Ornithomancy is the practice of reading omens from the actions of birds — the first bird you notice on New Years Day is an omen for the year ahead of you.
The first day of 2023 I saw a heron fly above the sea I was swimming in; 2024 a cormorant from my window in the bay; 2025 it was two starlings, together on a lamppost. I’ve spent some time this morning researching starling symbolism and seeing what resonates. Communication, cooperation, group dynamics, mimicry, shape shifting... we’ll see!
I thought about my heron and my cormorant a lot throughout the year they marked, their little gift of googled symbolism. You don’t have to believe any of it, but it’s a nice bit of introspection to start your year off.
